3 Comforts When You’re Reduced to Wordless Prayer

The Story: A new survey explores the perceptions and experiences of sexual misconduct among Protestant churchgoers.
The Background: Lifeway Research recently released the results of a national survey of Protestants on their perception of sexual misconduct. Respondents were screened to include only adults whose religious preference is Protestant and who attend services once a month or more. The survey asked a variety of questions to gauge what sort of experience those who attend Protestant churches have with sexual abuse, harassment, safety, and accountability within…

Where does bad theology begin to go bad? Are there common origin points for heresies?
In his book Bad Religion, Ross Douthat makes the compelling case that heresies often begin with attempts to neatly resolve the inherent paradoxes of the Christian faith, opting for either/or where orthodoxy is able to hold the both/and in tension:

We doctors are fixers. Medical school teaches us to conquer disease with an arsenal of technology. In the best circumstances, our determination to cure illness fulfills the call to love our neighbors (Matt. 22:39). A physician’s diligence can win people more time to love their families, pursue what matters in life, and glorify our Lord (Col. 3:17).
Yet while we can postpone death, only Jesus has overcome it. Eventually our cures run out. Cancer cells evade chemotherapy. The heart stretches and thins under the strain of living. Infections overwhelm. Ravaged by a sinful world, the body falls apart, its perfectly…